Chapter 981

Receiving Ning Yuchan’s message, Xu Jin was genuinely pleased.

But Ning Yuchan’s follow-up question made Xu Jin smile wryly.

Ning Yuchan asked when he had arrived and where he was now.

Was it convenient? She was coming to find him!

This directness left Xu Jin momentarily speechless.

Lying would be inappropriate.

Telling the truth outright—saying he’d been here seven or eight days—felt like a betrayal.

Saying he was too busy with affairs to visit her would be plausible.

But having sent not a single starlight message? That was hard to justify.

Originally, Xu Jin had planned to go to her directly for a surprise.

He never expected she’d be the one to find him first.

But Xu Jin was puzzled.

How had Ning Yuchan learned of his whereabouts?

Logically, that shouldn’t be possible.

The Special-Class Merit in the Thousand Star Alliance differed from the Extraordinary Merit in the Tongxuan War Zone.

In the Tongxuan War Zone, whoever earned Extraordinary Merit was announced to the entire army, so everyone would know.

But the Thousand Star Alliance, due to the diverse origins of its Emperor-level cultivators, accepted any Emperor who agreed to abide by its rules, allowing entry into the Yuan Domain to cultivate; the True Persons and Star Juniors beneath them had even more complex origins.

As both protection and secrecy, the Special-Class Merit in the Thousand Star War Zone was never made public.

After approval, only the recipient, the nominator—the Wufan True Person—and the Garrison Emperor were informed, since verification was required.

Only these three knew.

Xu Jin was deeply curious: how had Yuchan found out?

It left him utterly unsure how to reply.

【Yuchan, I just finished a major battle. Where are you now? I’ll come see you in a few days.】

【Really? I’m training on Miaozhang Star Island under my Master! When you come, let me know ahead of time—I’ll come pick you up.】 Ning Yuchan’s words radiated longing for Xu Jin.

【Just finished the battle. Still on the Star Realm Fragment. I’ll notify you once I set out.】

【Good, I’ll wait for you! I miss you!】

The words “I miss you” sent a surge of emotion through Xu Jin.

Yuchan was like that—cold and aloof before others, yet utterly warm and passionate in private.

As he pondered, Xu Jin suddenly received a starlight message from his Master, Fenghua Emperor.

【Jin’er, has Yuchan contacted you?】

【Master, Yuchan just reached out to me. Do you have something for me to attend to?】

【Not at all. Earlier, Yuchan sent me a starlight greeting. I casually mentioned you’d already arrived and that you two would reunite soon.】

【I’m messaging you now just to remind you.】

【That child is deeply filial. Even when not by my side, she greets me every three or five days.】

【During festivals, she sends gifts—not expensive, but full of heart.】

You must not let her down; take care of your family affairs properly!

Hearing this, Xu Jin felt his head spin.

So all this emotional turmoil stemmed from his Master.

His Master had sold him out.

He glanced toward Duyue Emperor’s direction, but dared not voice the thought, let alone dwell on it.

Still, he understood his Master’s meaning.

His Master hadn’t said a word, and Xu Jin hadn’t realized Ning Yuchan had quietly done so much behind the scenes.

【Master, rest assured—I’ll handle it properly! Master, should I prepare a gift for Miaozhang Emperor? How should I prepare it? Please advise.】

In response to this question, Fenghua Emperor quickly sent Xu Jin a gift list.

It was the list of gifts other disciples of Miaozhang Emperor had brought when visiting Fenghua Emperor—modest in value, but meaningful in sentiment.

Fenghua Emperor’s implication was that Xu Jin’s gift could be slightly more substantial, since Ning Yuchan trained under Miaozhang Emperor, who had nurtured her well.

Xu Jin understood his Master’s intent perfectly.

Half a day later, Xu Jin made his decision.

As in the Tongxuan War Zone, the opportunity to contemplate the Thousand Star Spirit Dome, earned through Special-Class Merit, allowed direct priority access.

Garrison Wufan True Person had scheduled Xu Jin’s time for seven days from now.

That is, on the twelfth day of the third month.

Xu Jin planned to visit Yuchan on Miaozhang Star Island three days from now, reunite with her for several days, then go to his Master.

Because in a few days, after the ninety-first purple yuan bone vein was refined, his Dao Embryo might naturally transform into a Nascent Soul.

For others, natural transformation into a Nascent Soul posed no problem.

The issue was the Heart Demon Tribulation.

Xu Jin had never forgotten this.

His cultivation of the Divine Path would inevitably draw the Heart Demon Tribulation when his Divine Soul reached a major breakthrough.

After meeting Ning Yuchan, he would consult his Master about it—see if any special preparations were needed.

After transforming into a Nascent Soul, once he completed his contemplation of the Thousand Star Spirit Dome, he would imbue the Chaos Cloud Tower with stars, then immediately break through to True Person.

Under normal circumstances, Xu Jin would become a True Person the moment he emerged from the Thousand Star Spirit Dome.

Then, the sea would widen—the sky would open!

Xu Jin spent two and a half days converting the gains from this battle into strength, gathering a portion of Star Ruin Yuan Sand for star imbuing, and refining his purple yuan bone veins to the ninety-first.

The moment he reached the ninety-first, he immediately stopped.

For as he refined the ninety-first purple yuan bone vein, he sensed a disturbance within his Dao Embryo.

It was an indescribable tremor.

As if about to burst free.